Not having enough space in your home can be discouraging. I have lived in many living situations where I have had to get creative. Our current home definitely has its challenges, but I am very thankful for having a place to call home. To be honest, though, I would love to find a home with more space, but that isn’t realistic right now. According to a survey I found, I am not alone in desiring more square footage.

I found this survey by Neighbor.com which was done in 2020 about how Americans feel about the size of their homes:

27.1% of Americans outgrow their homes within 2 years. 21% say they need more space after 2-4 years. 51.9% say they need more space after 5 or more years!

• 1 in 4 Americans outgrows their home within two years.
• Almost 1 in 3 urban dwellers outgrow their homes within two years.
• Across the board, more than 25% of respondents said they needed more space or wanted a home with more square footage.
• No matter the size of their home, most people think it’s just enough space when they move in.
• More than half of people say they accumulated new possessions during their first year in their new home.

The survey also found that if people were happy with what they had they were less likely to need more things or want a bigger house. That is something for me to remember!

I get it, sometimes we really do outgrow a house, especially if you get married and have kids. When we lived in California, the first place we moved into was a duplex with two bedrooms. It was great when we had one child, but after I got pregnant with our second child, we realized we needed more room. We did find a place that fit our growing family, and we managed to fill it with a third child and with more stuff.

A smaller home can be comfortable and functional.

After a few more moves, I realized the need to go through and purge what we had on a regular basis so the clutter wouldn’t get out of control. The biggest thing I learned was the house was much easier to manage when papers were taken care of, clothes I (or my family) didn’t wear were donated, and items we possessed had a home or were given away. Then you can make it your own with finishing touches that bless you.

Remember these 3 tips to keep a smaller home in order:

1. Control – Keep clutter under control
2. Contain – Find ways to contain your stuff
3. Create – Create spaces that you enjoy

Keep Clutter Under Control

I have trouble focusing when my house is a mess and I have a lot of clutter on the surfaces within my home. It is even more important when your home is smaller because it doesn’t take much for clutter to overtake your surfaces. It is time to take back the spaces in your home so you can function better. Make it your goal to go through each room and have bags or boxes labeled to donate, throw away or recycle, and move to a new home. Don’t expect to do your whole house in a day. Choose a room to do each week, don’t exhaust yourself or you will give up. If you would like to read more about getting rid of clutter, check out this post on Freeing Your Home of Clutter.

Find Ways To Contain Your Stuff

When you have a lack of space and storage, you have to get creative in how you organize. Think of it this way: everything has a home. You just have to figure out where that is. Use storage containers, trays, and baskets to help keep your things under control. I love containers (just ask my family), but don’t break the bank buying a bunch all at once. Find things you already have and repurpose them. For example, I use mason jars to organize many of the items in my kitchen. I wrote a blog post on organizing with containers that you can read here. Want more tips for using containers in your home? Check out these posts on Tips for Organizing Your Belongings with Containers and Getting Your Kitchen in Order: Creative Storage Ideas.

Create Spaces You Enjoy

You can change how you feel about your home. Instead of dwelling on what you don’t like about it, think about what kind of home you would like and create spaces that reflect the environment you want to spend time in. What kind of home do you want to have? Think of some adjectives that relate to what you like. Do you like comfortable spaces with pillows and comfy throw blankets or the minimalist look with little furniture or are you the life of the party and like bold colors and contemporary accessories? Explore what makes you happy and create those spaces within your home.

Are you happy with the size of your home or do you plan on doing some decluttering?